


Cold Coffee

by Katiebug445



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Armin is too, Jean Kirstein and Eren Yeager Fight, Jean's kind of a bookworm., M/M, also Jean has a cat named Brad apprently idfk, background eremika, coffee shop AU, coffee shop employee Jean Kirstein, customer Armin Arlert, it's great, they bond over books and crappy hot chocolate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-12 20:11:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16878432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katiebug445/pseuds/Katiebug445
Summary: Jean works at a coffee shop and is having a really slow day. He's counting down the seconds until he can either go home or fall asleep. A blond guy walks in and, much to his surprise, he's shoved immediately out of the way by co-worker and mortal enemy, Eren Jaeger, who tells him to keep out of it. Curiosity piqued, Jean keeps an eye out for the blond, who ends up coming back the next day. And the next, and the day after that...





	Cold Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> This was the very first Jearmin fic I ever wrote. I found this sitting back in my Google Docs while looking for something else, read over it, and decided to try working with it a little. I remember I wrote this shortly after I finished season two last November, maybe about a total of three weeks after I started shipping Jearmin all together. I never posted it anywhere because I was afraid of it not being good enough, and completely forgot about it until a few days ago. I thought with a little work, it might be worth posting after all, so here we are! 
> 
> Jean also apparently has a cat named Brad that makes a very, very brief appearance. I couldn't tell you why, but Jean totally seems like the kind of dude who would name a cat Brad.
> 
> Enjoy my first ever Jearmin fic, guys!

_ Tick, tick, tick, tick,  _ the steady, easy, rhythm of the clock on the wall behind him was about enough to put him to sleep. 

 

Jean Kirstein leaned against the counter, his chin in his hand, and was itching for something to do. His eyes lazily followed people walking by outside, chatting amongst themselves as they went about their lives, and he longed to be out there with them, instead of stuck in his stuffy, overpriced coffee shop. 

 

He hated days like this, the days when things were so slow, that watching paint dry would be preferable to being here another second. He glanced at the clock, and he was discouraged to find that only a minute and thirty seconds had passed since he checked it the last time. With a sigh, Jean pushed off the counter and scrubbed his hands across his face to wake himself up. 

 

Thanks to Sasha and Connie coming in late Friday night and all day Saturday, they’d caught up on inventory, and he personally had helped them restock everything. Levi made sure everything was spotless when he arrived after lunch. There was nothing left for Jean to do aside from praying to whatever deity that was paying attention for a customer or two. 

 

He didn’t even have homework to occupy him. 

 

Jean could hear Eren and Mikasa in the back, bickering about a math test they had the following day, and only the prospect of losing his job kept him from mouthing off to Eren. He knew from experience that if Levi caught them at each other’s throats again, they’d both be fired on the spot. And Jean  _ needed  _ this job. Bad. 

 

The sky was beginning to darken despite it being just a little after 4:00 in the afternoon, and Jean had a sinking feeling that it would probably be freezing by the time his shift ended. Great. With another glance around to make sure nobody was miraculously going to be heading inside, Jean pulled out his phone, opened up a couple social medias, and began scrolling. 

 

Marco seemed to be having a blast at the convention he’d decided to go to last minute, and Jean wished he was with him. From the pictures he’d been posting, he was making all kinds of friends with cosplayers, and had an entire backpack full of merchandise that Jean was envious of. Sasha was out sick, and her twitter was nothing but a solid stream of tweets and selfies posted from her bathroom floor, and how wonderful a boyfriend Connie was for risking contracting whatever virus she had to keep her company. 

 

With a sigh, Jean shoved his phone back into his arpon and went back to staring aimlessly at the door. He had half a mind to try hacking the speakers and pull up one of his playlists, but Levi had a strict policy about that (thanks to Eren) now, and he knew he’d get his ass handed to him if he tried. 

 

Finally, he heard the bickering coming up from the back and after a moment, Eren emerged, his face red and his eyes murderous. Jean couldn’t help but snort. “What’s wrong? Did mommy and daddy have a fight?” 

 

“Shut up.” Eren growled, leaning against the display case with his arms folded tightly across his chest. “It’s none of your business.” 

 

“I beg to differ. If a fight’s gonna break out, I wanna make sure I get a good seat, and have enough time to put a hundred on Mikasa.” 

 

“Are  _ you  _ looking to start a fight?” 

 

“Not at all. Just wantin’ your girlfriend to know she’s got my support, is all.” Jean snickered. 

 

“Will you  _ shut up?”  _

 

“No.” 

 

Eren stalked up to him, shoulders hunched and looking like he was about to punch him right in the face. He probably would have, too, if Mikasa hadn’t chosen that moment to poke her head out and break them up. She looked every bit as angry as Eren, and that cold stare of hers was about enough to make both boys fear for their lives. Instead of egging the hot headed idiot on anymore, Jean turned around and went back to staring at his watch while the lovebirds tried to resolve their issues in low voices at the opposite end of the counter. 

 

It was by complete chance that he noticed him. Jean rolled his eyes at the two and let his gaze fall to the windows, just in time to see a mop of blond, wind-blown hair struggling at the door. Jean straightened up, trying not to look like he was pissed off or desperately looking for something to do, and put on his best customer service smile. “Afternoon,” he greeted. 

 

“A-Afternoon.” The mop mumbled. 

 

“What can I do for ya?” 

_   
_ The kid had just opened his mouth, and suddenly Jean was being shoved out of the way by the full force of Eren Jaeger. He opened his mouth to scream at him, to tell him to stop being a rude ass, but he decided against it last minute. No need to scare off their fist customer in over an hour. Jean swallowed his remark and relaxed his stance just a little. 

 

Figuring that Eren had things under control, he didn’t think he was needed up there anymore. If he happened to bump into Eren on his way out and knock him a little off balance, though, he wouldn’t have complained. 

 

When Jaeger called the drink order, Jean got to work, trying to catch whatever bit of conversation he could between Eren and the customer. It seemed like they knew each other, pretty well from the brunette’s sudden shift in tone. He thought he even caught him smile once or twice. Creepy.

 

When blondie’s hot chocolate was finished, Jean brought it up with a smile, and a little wink to the guy, who muttered a quick thanks. After that, he was on his way, and off to a table near the back. Once he was out of their eyeline, Jean wheeled on Eren and caught his arm before he could disappear. “Mind tellin’ me what the fuck that shove was about?” 

 

“None of your business.” 

 

“Kinda my business when you almost shove me down, Jeager.” 

 

“Just stay out of it!” 

 

With a roll of his eyes, Jean decided to drop it. He knew if he continued with it, either Mikasa would kill him, or Levi would fire him; neither of which he could afford right now. He did, however, flip Eren off when he wasn’t looking, though, and that brought him a small bit of satisfaction. 

 

~~~

 

The next time Jean saw the blond was the first day of Christmas break. It was busy as hell, and he and Eren had been at each other’s throats their whole shift. They’d already gotten a warning from Levi, and Mikasa’s look promised horrible things if he said one more rude thing to Eren. 

In short, he’d been having a horrible fucking day. 

 

Jean was sulking at the register while he waited on Connie to finish the last round of drink orders, and drummed his fingers impatiently at the counter. The bell above the door jingled, and Jean looked up, recognition flashing across his face as the blond walked in, head half buried under a huge scarf and a hat that walked straight out of the ‘40s. 

 

“Hi again.” Jean said, trying to sound cheerful. “I like the hat.” 

 

The blond gave him a small, startled smile, and went to looking at the menu board. Jean waited patiently while his big, blue eyes scanned quickly over Levi’s handwritten words, and shoved his hands in his pockets to keep from drumming them again. He found himself staring at the boy across from him, watching as his lips moved while he read off the drinks, and decided that he was… kinda cute. 

 

The blond must have noticed him staring, because he lowered his head and mumbled out something Jean didn’t catch. 

 

“Say that again?” 

 

“Can I just get a large hot chocolate?” He said just a bit louder. 

 

“Sure thing. What’s the na--” 

 

“I got it from here.” 

 

Jean had no idea where Eren had come from, but he was suddenly there, shoving him out of the way _ again _ , and he actually had to bite down on his cheek to keep from yelling. That was twice, now. There was a reason Eren kept getting in the middle of this, and he wanted answers. Now. 

 

The blond was taken care of, and he headed back to the small table in the corner of the store. Jean noticed, as he sat down, that the blond had a book in his hands. He tried to read the cover, but he couldn’t make it out from where he was. It wasn’t insanely important, anyways, he guessed. 

 

Besides, he had bigger things to worry about right now. 

 

Jean grabbed Eren by the arm, and felt as the smaller boy tensed up immediately. “Mind telling me what that was about?” Jean asked, raising his eyebrows. 

 

Eren responded by pulling his arm back and walking away, sneakily flipping him off as he went. 

 

~~~~

 

He came back the next day, at the same time, and thank  _ God _ Eren had the day off. 

 

It was near 6:00 in the evening, almost every table in the place was full up, and the heat was about enough to suffocate him. He’d been stuck at the register again, and thankfully, they were busy enough that he didn’t have a lot of time to think. Jean almost didn’t realize it was the blond at the register, and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw who it was. “You’re back!” He said. 

 

The blond smiled that same shy smile and gently asked for a large hot chocolate, and for the first time, Jean realized how soft of a voice the blond had. He liked it. He wanted him to say more things. 

 

“Is the hot chocolate here really that good?” Jean asked. “I’ve never had it before.” 

 

The blond looked up, and gave a small shrug. “It’s not that bad.” 

 

“Well, what do I have to do to turn that ‘not bad’ into ‘pretty good’?” 

 

“Uh…” 

 

“I’m just kidding.” Jean replied, shooting him a smile. “What’s the name for the order?” 

“Armin.” Said the boy. 

 

“Armin.” Jean repeated. “Well, Armin, I’ll be sure to get that out to you soon, if you want to have a seat.” 

 

“T-Thanks.” Armin replied, turning away from the counter and heading off to that same seat as the day before. 

 

“Connie,” Jean called, turning back to his friend. “Go ahead and add a little whipped cream to that hot chocolate before you send it up. Forgot to say it.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the change enough for the addition, and left it on the counter until he could open the register again. 

 

After a few moments, the drink was brought up, and Jean decided that instead of calling him up, he’d deliver it to Armin himself. 

 

He grabbed the cup in his hand, hurried out from behind the counter, and headed off for Armin’s table. “Sorry about the wait,” Jean said by way of greeting, “We’re a little backed up right now, but it’s still warm.” 

 

Armin jumped, his book falling out of his hands and onto the floor, and started apologizing for being a clutz. “Shoot, I’m sorry, I’ll get it, I’m sorry.” He kept mumbling. 

 

“No, it’s okay.” Jean stopped him from bending down, and set his drink on his table. “I’ll get it.” He reached down and picked up Armin’s book, which was a battered copy of  _ The Hobbit  _ and handed it back to the boy with a gentle smile. “You like Tolkien?” 

 

“Kinda?” Armin replied, gently taking the book back and clutching it close to his chest. “This is for school, though.” 

 

“He’s good.” Jean said, his eyes flickering to the novel in the other boy’s hand again. “What’s your favorite?” 

 

“I-I don’t know, this is the first I’ve read.” 

 

“Well, that’s a good book. I promise. Kinda weird, but good.” 

 

“Cool.” Armin replied. 

 

They stood in an awkward silence for a moment, and, taking the hint that their conversation was over, Jean cleared his throat. “Well, Armin, enjoy your book, and your drink. Have a nice evening.” 

 

“You too.” 

 

Jean kicked himself the whole way back to the counter, wondering when he became such an awkward dweeb. Nobody would ever let him live that down if they found out. 

 

~~~

 

It was freezing the next afternoon when he arrived at work. It had been raining since he woke up and the temperature was dropping rapidly. He wouldn’t have been surprised if by the end of the night, they’d have snow. 

 

Jean took off his coat and shoved his hat in the breast pocket, hanging it up and rubbing his hands together to get some warmth back into them. “Hey, losers.” He said, getting a small scoff out of Eren. Jean snorted and went to clock in. 

 

Much to his relief, Levi had the day off, which meant Marco was in charge, which meant they could goof off without the fear of being yelled at. Jean took the chance to hack into the bluetooth and put on his own music, which improved his mood even more. 

 

Just as he predicted, by 4:00, the rain had turned to snow, and Marco had gone outside to put salt down on the sidewalk. Jean was busy repeating one of the songs he knew Eren hated for the fifth time when the door opened, and Marco walked back inside with Armin. Jean slid his phone back into his pocket as the opening chords started, and he heard Eren cussing him out from the back. 

 

Jean covered up his laugh with a cough, and gave Armin that same smile. “Hi.” He said. This time, the other boy had a backpack with him, and he looked to be having a little trouble supporting the extra weight. Jean decided to have mercy on him and not chat him up too much right now. “Large hot chocolate, as usual?” 

 

“Y-Yeah, thanks.” Armin said, shooting him a half smile before heading off to that same table again and setting his backpack on the ground. Jean couldn’t help but watch him. He pulled a laptop out of it and set it on the table, firing it up and hunching over when it turned on. He then pulled a pair of headphones out, stuck them on, and began clicking around. 

 

Again, Jean personally took it upon himself to deliver Armin’s drink to him, and set it down on his table. When the smaller boy looked up, he slid his headphones down around his neck, and grabbed his drink. “I didn’t realize you knew Tolkien.” He said. “It surprised me.” 

 

“Well, I’m not just a pretty face.” Jean replied, snorting. 

 

Embarrassment colored Armin’s cheeks and he began to backtrack. “I-I didn’t mean it like that. You just didn’t… you didn’t strike me as the type, is all.” 

 

“Oh?” The taller boy said, taking the seat across from Armin. “And what exactly is my ‘type’, Armin?” 

 

Armin studied his face for a long few seconds, Jean shifting a little under the weight of his gaze, before he finally shook his head in defeat. “I don’t know.” 

 

“Just don’t seem like the typical nerd?” 

 

Armin just blushed and dropped his gaze to his computer, obviously embarrassed. “I don’t know. Forget I said anything.” 

 

Jean wasn’t having it, though. He leaned forward on his side of the table, his arms resting on the pressed wood, and smirked. “Well, if it helps, I don’t know either. If you ask Eren, I’m nothing but an asshole.” 

 

Armin turned back to the counter, finding his friend up at the counter, shooting glances their way every few seconds. The blond quickly turned back around and cast his eyes down again. “Well, Eren’s not always right about everything.” He muttered. 

 

A small chuckle escaped Jean’s lips, and he got back to his feet. “I better get back. But hey, next time, don’t hesitate to talk to me about the book, alright? It’s a good one.” 

 

“Noted.” Armin replied, watching Jean walk away. If he felt his cheeks get a little warm, he wouldn’t admit it. 

 

~~~~

 

Armin showed up at the same time the next day, 4:00, and had his laptop with him again. Jean made sure he was front and center at the register, and greeted Armin with a flirty smile. “Large hot chocolate and the back table?” 

 

Armin squinted, looking between Jean and the menu board for a few seconds, setting his laptop down on the counter. “How about a coffee this time?”

 

Jean just chuckled. “You got it.  Anything else?” 

 

“Two sugars and some time on your break?” 

 

The taller boy blinked, not knowing what to say to that. Instead of saying anything, he nodded, and, with a slight blush in his cheeks, Armin took off for his normal table. 

  
  


Jean just stared after him for a second, trying to process what just happened. Armin had been coming in for the last week, and he was always very shy. What brought on the change so suddenly? Shaking his head, he got started making the other boy’s coffee for him. 

 

After a moment, he took it out, and set it down on the table. “I’ll be out soon, give me about twenty minutes, okay?” 

 

“Okay.” Armin replied, shooting Jean a quick, barely there smile, before turning back to his computer and sliding his headphones up over his ears.   

  
  


Jean found himself staring at Armin’s table several times, wondering what the sudden request was about. The most logical assumption was that he wanted to talk books, and Jean, well… he wouldn’t complain if that was it. 

 

He found his eyes flickering up to the clock every few seconds, and was desperately counting down the time until he could tell Connie he was going on break. 

  
  
  


“Alright,” Jean said, plopping down in the seat across from the smaller boy, “what’s up?” 

 

Armin studied him for a moment, and slid his headphones down around his neck again. “How’d you get interested in books?” He asked. It sounded a bit dumber coming out of his mouth than it had in his head, but he was genuinely curious. 

 

Jean ran his tongue over the sore spot in his cheek while he thought. “I don’t know… When I was young, my mom would read to me a lot. I guess I just… stuck with it as I got older.” 

 

“That’s cool.” 

 

“Yeah, she’s… pretty cool. Don’t tell her I said that, though, alright?” 

 

That pulled a laugh out of Armin, and the blond took a sip of his drink, lost in thought for a moment. “What are some of your favorite authors?”

 

Jean shrugged. “Steinbeck, King, Tolkien, obviously.” He chuckled, shooting the smaller boy a grin. “Harry Potter’s not that bad, either.” 

 

Armin’s eyes lit up. “You know Harry Potter? What house are you?” 

 

Jean leaned back in his chair, giving a small roll of his eyes. “Well, I personally thought I was Slytherin when I first got into the series, but according to Pottermore, I’m… I’m Hufflepuff.” 

 

Armin couldn’t hold back a small laugh at hearing that, which he tried to hide behind his cup. 

 

“In my defense, Marco and Sasha are, too.” Jean pouted. “But what about you?” 

 

“Ravenclaw.” 

 

“Wow. Nerd.” 

 

“There wasn’t ever a question.” Armin replied, shrugging. “I knew from day one.”

 

Jean laughed to himself, watching the smaller boy as he typed away at his keyboard for a second or two. “What about you, Armin? How’d you get into reading?” 

 

“My grandpa.” He said simply. “When I was little, he would show me pictures from when he used to travel. He had lots of pictures of the ocean. I always wanted to know more about it. I can remember we’d go to the library, and I’d always come away with a huge stack of books about the water, or marine life, and everything in between. Eventually, that just gave way to just a love for reading in general.” 

 

“No fair, your story’s more heartwarming than mine!” 

 

That startled a laugh out of Armin. “I’m sorry?” 

 

“You should be!” Jean teased, “I have nothing to compete with!” 

 

“Now that’s not a very Hufflepuff attitude, you should be ashamed.” Armin retorted, laughing again. 

 

Jean snorted. “What about favorite authors?” 

 

Armin thought for a moment, shutting the lid on his computer. It looked to Jean like this was a harder question for him than it should have been, and he couldn’t help but think it was kind of adorable. 

 

“Well…” Armin started, eyes fixed on a photo on the wall. “I really like Rowling, obviously. I like John Green… Neil Gaiman.” 

 

“I’ve read a few of Gaiman’s books. They’re pretty good.” 

 

Armin smiled at that. “What about Terry Prachett?” 

 

Jean shook his head. “Doesn’t sound familiar.” 

 

“Jean!” Armin replied, a little louder than he expected. “You have to read Terry’s books! He and Neil were good friends before he died!”

 

“Okay, I’ll try to hunt one down.” 

 

“Please!” 

 

Jean opened his mouth to reply, but saw the time, and swore to himself. “I gotta get back or I’m gonna get in trouble. This was… kinda fun, Armin. Maybe we’ll do it again tomorrow?” 

 

“Sure.” The smaller boy shot him a smile, and took a sip of his drink. “Same time?” 

 

“Yeah.” 

 

“I’ll see you then.” 

 

“Cool.” Jean smiled, a bit sheepishly. 

 

~~~~

 

When Jean got to work the next afternoon, Eren was leaning against the counter, waiting for him. His arms were folded, his jaw was set, and it made Jean a bit nervous. He stopped in his tracks just inside the door, waiting for something to happen. 

 

“Can I help you, Jeager?” He asked after a moment. 

 

“Yeah, actually.” Eren replied. “Stay away from Armin.” 

 

Jean walked passed the smaller boy, shrugging out of his coat and shoving it behind the counter. “And why, Jeager, would I do a thing like that?”

 

“Because.” 

 

“Because…?”

 

“He’s too good for you.” 

 

Jean stopped for a moment, wondering why in the hell this was becoming such a big deal, and folded his own arms. “Just out of curiosity, why do you care so much who Armin talks to?” 

 

Eren pushed himself off the counter and took two steps towards Jean, eyes murderous. “Because I know how you are. I see you at school, Kirstein; you kinda make yourself hard to miss. All you are is an egoistic, horse-faced bastard, and Armin deserves better.” 

 

Jean had to fight not to touch his face after Eren’s comment, and shoved his hands in the pocket of his hoodie instead. “That stings a bit, I’m not gonna lie.” He retorted. “And what makes you think there’s enough going on between Armin and I that warrants  _ this _ ?” 

 

“Come on, Jean. Everybody sees you two. You don’t interact with anybody the way you do with him. We all know what’s going on. You even have his drink order memorized already!” 

 

“I have it memorized because it’s easy, you moron!” 

 

“That doesn’t explain the flirting!” Eren shouted. “Just back off, okay? Leave Armin alone.” 

 

“What else is there  _ to  _ explain? Just because I know how to talk to people without screaming in their face, you think I’m hitting on him? Are you _ that _ dumb?” 

 

Eren didn’t say anything to that, just flipped Jean off before walking away, and left the taller boy there to calm down. Jean braced himself against the counter, taking breath after breath and trying to still his hands, and glared at the spot where Eren disappeared. He couldn’t believe he’d been ambushed like that. 

 

Who in the hell was _ Eren Jeager _ to say who he could and couldn’t talk to, especially when they requested time with him in the first place! Jean didn’t want to stop talking to Armin because he enjoyed their banter, and he enjoyed the blond’s company in general, but now that Eren said to keep away made him even more determined to keep their line of communication open. 

 

Jean shut his eyes and counted to ten, just like his mother had taught him, and took one more breath before letting it go. A small flood of customers came in about that time, and Jean put on his best retail face to deal with it, a small part of him hoping Armin would be among them. 

 

He wasn’t. In fact, Armin didn’t show up at all that day, much to Jean’s disappointment. He couldn’t help but wonder if Eren had gotten him with the same threats that were thrown at him, and he worried. What if Armin wouldn’t be back now? What if Eren had gotten into his head, and told him a bunch of crap about what he was supposedly like? 

 

Armin wasn’t in the next day, either. It was the last day of winter break, and after this, it would be even harder to see him because of school and work, and a million other things that could stand in his way. Jean’s eyes flickered hopefully up to the door every time someone walked by the windows, only to be let down when they went on. 

 

He found himself missing the blond more and more as the hours passed. He longed for another conversation about books, or how he made a pretty terrible Hufflepuff, or anything that made Armin’s eyes light up like they had before. Jean couldn’t help but wonder what happened to him in that short amount of time; how had Armin gone so quickly from just another customer to someone he sought out like this? 

 

What was happening to him? 

 

~~

 

6:00 AM came along much too early. Jean lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, a mountain of blankets piled around him, and his small, gray tabby cat laying on his chest. With a tired groan, a sleepy hand reached up, scratching the tabby gently behind the ears as it began to purr. “Brad, I have to get up. I know, it’s tragic.” Jean shifted gently, not wanting to disturb the cat too much, and sat up. 

 

With a stretch, the boy got to his feet, got started looking for his school things, and got dressed. 

 

~~

 

Jean would have been lying if he said he wasn’t looking out for Armin that morning. He thought he’d spotted him at one point in the hall, but it turned out to be another short blonde named Krista or something. Jean wasn’t sure, and it wasn’t really important at the moment. 

 

He kept an eye out for Armin the whole rest of the day, but he didn’t see him. He did spy Eren and Mikasa, though, and part of him wanted to ask about the smaller boy, but he knew it wouldn’t be worth the chewing out he’d get. Instead, Jean went about his day, his heart stopping every time he mistook Historia for Armin. 

 

~~

 

It was another week before he saw a glimpse of Armin again, just as he was walking to class. Jean had just gotten inside, and he saw those familiar eyes, that smile, and he made to open the door back up, but he was already gone. Jean sighed, taking his seat, and resolved to hunt him down later. 

 

Sooner came later on in the day. Jean was in the library, looking for a couple books to read over the weekend, when he spied that blond hair again. This time, he wasn’t letting him get away. Jean set his books down, and quietly took off after Armin, looking around to see if he was alone or not. He saw an empty row of books, and grabbed the smaller boy’s hand, pulling him into it, and put a finger to his lips. 

 

“Where have you been?” Jean asked in a whisper, his hand still wrapped around Armin’s wrist. “I haven’t seen you in almost two weeks.” 

 

Armin, still getting over his shock, looked up at him sadly. “My grandpa got really sick, and then I caught it trying to take care of him. Today’s the first day I’ve actually felt like a person again.” 

 

Jean released his wrist and pulled back, clearing his throat. “Is your grandpa okay?” 

 

“Yeah! He’s fine now. Healthy as a horse.” 

 

“Good…” 

 

It fell silent between the two for a few seconds, awkwardness filling the space around them, and Armin let out a small laugh to break the tension. “I might have to insist on a large hot chocolate later. It’s been too long since I had one.” 

 

“I… might be able to help with that…” Jean replied, taking another step back. It had only just occurred to him how close they’d been standing, and he felt awkward about it now. “Consider it on the house, though.” 

 

“No, I couldn’t do tha--” 

 

“Yeah, you can.” The taller boy said, quickly adding, “On one condition: You gotta keep me company on my break again.” 

 

Armin pretended to think about it for a moment, and then smiled. “I don’t know, Jean, that’s a lot to ask, but I’ll see what I can do.” 

 

“I know, it’s such a tragedy, but you’ll get a free drink out of the deal.” 

 

The smaller boy giggled, and slipped passed Jean back out into the main hall. “What time do you go in tonight?” he asked in a murmur.

 

“Right after school.” 

 

“I’ll see you then, then.” And then Armin was gone, back on the hunt for his books, and Jean was left standing there watching him go. 

 

He raised his hand and gave a small little wave to his retreating form, not sure what just happened. “See you then,” 

 

~~~

 

Armin came through the door at 4:00, same backpack on his shoulders with the top of a laptop sticking out, and waved when he saw Jean. He quickly made his way to the front and spread his arms out to the sides. “I’m here for my hot chocolate.” He told him. 

 

“Your hot chocolate on the house, you mean.” 

 

“Jean, you don’t have to do that, I’m serious.” 

 

The taller boy shrugged. “It’s one hot chocolate, man. You’re a loyal enough customer that you’ve earned it.” 

 

Armin mulled that over in his head for a moment. “As long as it won’t get you in trouble.” 

 

“It’ll be fine, don’t worry.” 

 

With a nod, the smaller boy hurried off to his table, and Jean got back to work. 

  
  
  


Armin jumped a little when a cup was sat on the table next to him, and Jean plopped down into one of the vacant seats. The smaller boy looked down, confused, and eyed the cup suspiciously. “Don’t tell me you paid for this one, too?” 

 

“I might have.” Jean muttered, taking a sip of his own drink. “Didn’t think it’d be very fair if I came over sporting my own drink while you didn’t have anything.” 

 

“It’s too much.” 

 

“It really isn’t.”

 

“Let me pay you back.” 

 

“Armin. It’s a couple drinks. It’s not a huge deal.” 

 

“Please?” 

 

“Fine,” Jean replied, “you can pay me back with your company.” 

 

“ _ Jean. _ ” 

 

“ _ Armin _ .” 

 

The two stared at each other for a tense few seconds before Armin finally gave in, leaning back in his seat, and sighed. “I actually brought you something.” He said, reaching into his bag and pulling out a small, worn book. “I - I thought you might enjoy a new read, but don’t feel obligated, it’s… well, it’s kinda dumb.” 

 

Jean took the book from Armin and smiled, trying to hide his excitement. “You might want to be careful, Eren already thinks I’m hitting on you. Do things like that, he might think we’re actually dating.” 

 

“Wait a minute, you mean you  _ weren’t _ hitting on me?” Armin challenged. 

 

That shut the taller boy up for a minute, and he stuttered, floundering for something to say. “I… Maybe a little, but, I - I…” 

 

Armin laughed, a grin spreading wide across his face, and met Jean’s eyes. “Well, I’m flattered, Jean.” 

 

Jean stopped for a moment, waiting for the shoe to drop, waiting for Armin to laugh at him, or tell him to stop, or any other way the smaller boy could have stomped on him. “I sense a ‘but’,” he said eventually. 

 

“No, not a ‘but’, but maybe an ‘and’.” 

 

“What does that mean?” Jean asked. 

 

“Well, how about, ‘and, maybe bringing that book was my way of hitting on  _ you _ ’?” 

 

Jean blinked, taking a moment to process what Armin just said, and a slow grin spread itself across his face. “I - I guess I’ll have to accept that book, then.” 

 

“Cool.” The smaller boy replied, relieved. 

 

Things fell to an awkward silence for a few seconds, the two staring at each other while waiting for the other to say something, and Jean cleared his throat. “So, where does this leave us?” 

 

Armin thought about it for a moment. “How about, on your next day off, we go out for ice cream. I’m kinda burned out on hot chocolate and coffee. My treat, though.” 

 

“Okay.” 

 

“Okay.” 

 

“Rad.” Jean grinned, unable to fully hide the blush in his cheeks. Things fell silent between the two for another moment before Armin started telling him about the loaned book, and Jean listened with an interested ear. After a little while, they moved onto other books, then music, and Armin walked away with several new bands to listen to when he got home. 

 

They spent all of Jean’s break talking and laughing, and realizing just how special the other was. It was only after Jean had returned to work that Armin tried to take a sip of his hot chocolate, and realized that both it and the other boy’s coffee had gone completely cold. 

  
  



End file.
